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| Mistrial in case of South Carolina cop who killed Walter Scott from behind | Mistrial in case of South Carolina cop who killed Walter Scott from behind |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Jurors in the case of a white police officer, Michael Slager, who shot and killed African American Walter Scott in the back, could not reach a unanimous verdict, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial. | Jurors in the case of a white police officer, Michael Slager, who shot and killed African American Walter Scott in the back, could not reach a unanimous verdict, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial. |
| The jury deliberated for nearly 22 hours over four days whether to convict Slager of murder or voluntary manslaughter. A Judge called it "the longest [deliberation] I've ever been involved in." | The jury deliberated for nearly 22 hours over four days whether to convict Slager of murder or voluntary manslaughter. A Judge called it "the longest [deliberation] I've ever been involved in." |
| The shooting was caught a bystander’s cellphone video and shocked the nation. | |
| Slager pleaded not guilty and has been free on bail since the deadly April 2015 shooting. He insists that the video does not reflect exactly what happened on the day that he stopped Scott. According to Slager, a struggle over the Taser culminated in Scott grabbing the weapon, which prompted his response. | |
| The jury had been tasked with deciding whether the former North Charleston officer was guilty of either murder or voluntary manslaughter, or if his actions were in self-defense, meaning that Slager committed no crime. Slager could face a lifetime in prison if convicted of murder. The voluntary manslaughter charge could bring a sentence of up to 30 years. | |
| Earlier in the day, Judge Clifton Newman instructed the jurors that that any guilty verdict must be produced only if jurors are beyond reasonable doubt. | |
| According to Live5News, the verdict hangs in the air if one juror does not agree with the rest of them. | |
| “I cannot and will not change my mind,” one juror said in a note cited by Live5News. “I understand the position of the court, but I cannot in good conscience consider a guilty verdict. | |
| I respect the position of my fellow jurors, some of which oppose my position […] as you stated, we must follow the instructions you have given us, and the law. At the same time, my heart does not want to have to tell the Scott family that the man that killed their son, brother and father is innocent. But with the choices, I cannot and will not change my mind.” |